


Aliment

by itachiscatears



Series: Izuna Week 2021 [4]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Generation Swap, Gen, Genin Team, Tobirama is kind of clueless about how friends work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-11
Updated: 2021-02-11
Packaged: 2021-03-17 23:46:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29358957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/itachiscatears/pseuds/itachiscatears
Summary: It had never occurred to Tobirama, used to being sought out by his brothers and cousins, that friendships had to be maintained.
Relationships: Senju Tobirama & Senju Touka & Uchiha Izuna, Senju Tobirama & Uchiha Izuna, Senju Tobirama/Uchiha Izuna
Series: Izuna Week 2021 [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2151918
Comments: 4
Kudos: 49





	Aliment

**Author's Note:**

> This could be read as purely platonic or pre-romance. 
> 
> Boring background stuff: Generation swap, meaning Naruto's generation are the Founders and vice versa. Tobirama, Izuna and Tōka attended the Academy together and were put on a genin team as their skills complemented each other. They're between 18 - 20 here. 
> 
> Written for:
> 
> Izuna Week 2021 - Day 4: ~~Role Reversal~~ | Genin Team

It is not often that Tobirama finds himself with nothing to do. He has three brothers and numerous cousins to train with, dozens of experiments and techniques to study, endless books and scrolls to pore over. He is sent on at least one high-ranking mission every fortnight.

Today he does not feel like training, studying or reading. He had already checked the missions desk and been told that all the B and A-rank missions had been taken. His brothers are occupied with their own hobbies and Hashirama had cajoled Madara into going on a hot springs tour with him. He had invited them too, but neither Tobirama, Kawarama nor Itama particularly enjoyed the idea of sitting naked with Uchiha Madara for extended periods of time.

With nothing to occupy his mind, he leaves the Senju district on an afternoon walk around the village. He kneads chakra as he walks, testing the limits of his range as he does most days when he has chakra to spare.

He pauses beneath a cluster of trees, Uchiha Izuna's chakra signature burning in his mind's eye. He is performing ninjutsu at one of the training grounds, chakra flaring and focusing in turn.

Tobirama turns slowly to face his direction, struck by the realisation that he has not seen Izuna in a long time – barring split-second encounters on the street or at the missions desk where they would nod to each other and go on with their respective tasks.

They had stopped interacting regularly when they became chūnin, understandably, though they had still met to spar every so often. He does not remember the last time they had spoken to each other; probably at the beginning of the year when Hashirama had organised a small evening drinking and gambling to celebrate Tobirama and Tōka's jōnin promotions. Tobirama only remembers because Izuna and Madara had had to leave early to prepare for an A-rank mission, prompting Hashirama to complain repeatedly to him about how _they_ never got sent on missions together even when Tobirama was a chūnin.

He considers joining Izuna for a spar. It would be interesting to see how his skills have improved since they had stopped taking missions together.

By the time he arrives, Izuna has already finished his exercises for the day and is leaving the training area.

"Tobirama," he says in clear surprise.

"I sensed you nearby. Spar?"

Izuna considers this for a moment and continues through the trees. "Maybe another time. See you."

The dismissal is a little insulting, to say the least. Tobirama nods and watches him go from the corner of his eye. Izuna's hair is almost as long as his brother's now, tied back in a low tail and flopping out of the high collar of his mantle.

He contemplates asking Izuna to join him for lunch, but he is out of sight by the time Tobirama concludes that he is not very hungry.

He returns to his walk, as bored as he had been when he started it.

*

Time continues to pass innocuously. Tobirama has forgotten about testing Izuna's skills when Tōka says in passing, "Did you hear? Izuna finally made jōnin."

He had not. He gives his cousin a narrow look. "He told you?"

As far as he had been aware, Tōka had not been in contact with Izuna either. He would have noticed, at least recently, if their chakra signatures had been together when he was scanning the village.

"No, I stopped by Sensei's house to see the baby. She told me he came only a few hours before me and mentioned his exam."

"When are we meeting?"

She gives him a questioning look.

"To celebrate," he clarifies irritably.

"She didn't mention anything like that. It didn't sound that recent."

He is not ultimately surprised that Izuna had not informed them personally, but it does itch at him a little. Izuna had chastised _him_ for not being informed about Tobirama's promotion until Tōka passed her exam a month later.

"Shall we have dinner?" she says. "I'll invite Izuna and Sensei."

"Yes. Soon."

*

They arrive at Sensei's house with fresh groceries and the fish Tobirama had caught that afternoon. Tōka cooks the side dishes while he prepares the fish and Izuna arrives just before sundown with an offering of fruit for dessert.

Tobirama is not well-versed in _friendliness_ , but he is not ignorant to the nuances of social interactions. There is very little nuance to be found here, in fact.

Conversation does not dry up with missions to recount and the jōnin exam to dissect, but Tobirama is overly aware of how _polite_ it is. His team had never been tight-knit or boisterous like Hashirama's but they had worked together well. Meals had often been silent, but never to an uncomfortable degree – they had simply never had much to discuss beyond mission and training strategies.

Even so, Izuna has never been so aloof. Reserved and passionate in turn as a genin, he has graduated to polite conversation and half-smiles. There is no significant warmth in his face or voice, no true interest in his questions; the only person he seems genuinely pleased to be conversing with is the baby on his knee.

It is—annoying. They had been on good terms as chūnin; significantly better terms than as genins, in fact, when they would argue or ignore each other without the threat of failing a mission to force them to cooperate. Izuna had stopped by regularly to cajole him into spars or to watch their brothers annihilate the training grounds. Tobirama had declined more often than not, busy with clan duties or his own studies. Evidently Izuna had tired of the effort.

Sensei retires to bed with her baby after the meal and they clean up in silence. It is too brisk to be uncomfortable, dishes washed and leftovers packaged, but Tobirama is unnaturally aware of the distance between them.

It is nearing eleven when they leave the house. Izuna offers a miniscule bow. "Thank you for celebrating my promotion with me. The food was very good. Have a good night."

"Izuna."

He looks back. If the lack of honorific offends him, he hides it well.

"Yes?"

"Let's spar," Tobirama says shortly. "Tomorrow."

"Sorry. I train with my little brother on Saturdays."

Tobirama grits his teeth. "Sunday?"

Izuna hesitates, clearly having not expected him to push the subject. He does not look particularly happy about it.

The pause is slightly too long. Tōka asks casually, "Am I invited? Bottom of the ladder buys lunch?”

"Fine," Izuna says with a hint of irritation. "Nine o'clock. Good night."

They part ways, them to the east and Izuna to the west. Tōka watches him with raised brows, but thankfully keeps any comments about his sociability to herself.

 _This is going to be harder than I anticipated_ , he thinks sullenly. Is it even worth the effort? He hadn’t noticed the absence until recently; Izuna clearly thinks little of them. What exactly is he trying to salvage?

 _“Hey, stupid. What are you looking so scared for? My eyes feel fine now. It always hurts when they’re triggered – my dad told me so.” A pause. “Thanks for healing me, by the way. Let’s go before those idiots get away with our Earth scroll for good. Now that I have my Sharingan I’m going to steal that guy’s technique, see how_ he _likes it!”_

Tōka pauses outside her front door, already loosening her hair. “Good call, by the way, with dinner and Sunday. I miss when we were a team. I hope he does too.”

Tobirama nods curtly and walks the rest of the way to the Senju main house. Madara and Hashirama are drinking on the engawa, unsurprisingly.

“Hey, little brother! Want to play cards with us?”

“No.” Then, suspiciously, “Where’s Mito-san?”

“Mito?” Hashirama blinks. “She went home a little while ago – said we were being loud and annoying.”

“She said _you_ were being loud and annoying, begging for dates and asking her to marry you,” Madara says, taking a swig from a mystery bottle. “Put your damn cards down – I don’t have all night.”

Hashirama slumps gloomily and lays down his cards. “Do you think I went too far? I really thought she’d say yes this time until you untied your hair. What did you have to do that for? She barely looked at me all night after that, plaiting your hair and making eyes at you.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“What do you mean what am I talking about! You’re seducing my girlfriend!”

“She’s not your girlfriend.”

“She would be if you weren’t so damn attractive!”

_“W-what the hell! Don’t say weird things! I’m going to cut you off!”_

“Noooooo! I’ll shut up!”

Tobirama rolls his eyes and goes inside. His team might be fractured right now, but at least they aren’t slobbering all over each other.


End file.
